Oil prices continue to crash with markets said to be “oversupplied”

A
oil pump is seen at sunset outside
Scheibenhard
Thomson
Reuters

• Brent crude hits lowest price since December
  2017.
• OPEC is set to meet on December 6th to discuss supply
  concerns.
• Weaker global growth and a supply glut depressing
  prices.
• Follow Brent’s price throughout the day at
  Markets Insider.

Brent crude is staying lower for longer. 

Oil markets continued to drop Friday as persistent concerns about
a glut in global supply were exacerbated by weaker economic
conditions. 

Brent was down 1% as of 9.20 a.m. GMT  (4.20 a.m. ET) having
previously hit $61.58 a barrel — dropping to
levels not seen since December 2017 despite news that Saudi
Arabia was willing to cut production. 

“We will not sell oil that customers don’t need,”
said Saudi Energy Minister Khalid al-Falih.

Supply concerns are expected to lead to OPEC cutting production
at a summit on December 6th with prices still stuck in a bearish
position. Oil briefly touched $86 in early October before
dropping dramatically in the past month. 

Volatility is also high in energy markets with WTI and crude
reaching levels not seen since the the 2014-2016 market slump and
before that the financial crisis of 2008,
according to Reuters. 

Record production from the US and inventories their highest
levels since last December have weighed on prices despite
President Trump’s renewed sanctions on Iran. Concerns that global
economic growth may slow have also led to weakening demand. 

“The market is currently oversupplied,” according to a note from
US investment bank Jefferies. 

Get the latest Oil WTI price here.